Difficulty Breastfeeding a Drowsy Infant

I have a sister who had the same problem. Her son is 8 wks. She undresses him. When her husband is around she will have him undress him to his diaper. Then as she is feeding him she will keep a blanket on him. If he falls asleep again the blanket comes off. She has her husband undress him when he can so he is part of the feeding process.

Been there done that. My pediatrician and my lactation consultant both said it was important to try a nd keep her awake - wet washclothes, tickle under chin, etc, until you feel she's fed enough.

With my kiddos I would typically undress them midway through and change the diaper-this changes the air temp around them and makes them a bit uncomfortable so they tend to wake up. I would also make sure I was touching,caressing them, talking to them/singing (and that would keep anyONE awake!LOL)
Hang in there--your little one will come around!!

Hi A., Congratulations on your new son, and the decision to breastfeed. It is important that he is having 8-10 feedings per day, and wet and poopy diapers after feedings.He also should have regained his birthweight by now. If he is never awake and alert, I would be concerned & have a visit with his ped asap. I don't mean to alarm you, but you want to make sure that he is having enough. This doesn't mean that you should supplement, but it might mean that you should have a visit with a lactation consultant after the ped. Is there a la leche group in your area? They can help and recommend someone. Try googling la leche if you have no contact. Good luck, and keep us posted.
L.

dont start supplementing for this reason. it will affect your milk supply, and possibly interfere with breastfeeding. this is only a temporary issue and you wouldnt want it to cause a permanent sitation in the future.

i would second the undressing thing. my sister actually had to put a soda can on her son. my daughter wouldnt wake for anything the first 24 hours. i think some babies just like to sleep. if he is gaining weight properly, i would think he was fine and its just a phase(next week he probaly wont sleep at all LOL). some babies are very efficient nursers. my daughter only nursed for 5-10 mins, even now at 10 months. if he wasnt gaining well, i would worry why he wasnt waking out of hunger. i would mention it to the doctor either way. supplementing still wouldnt be telling you what is causing him not to wake. is he jaundice at all? sometimes that can have an effect, some babies go to a 2 week visit, others a month. in your case, go with your gut. if you are truly worried, take him now just to get weighed at least. how is his soft spot and his diapers? they are the best indicators.

good luck to you, i would be very interested to hear an update.

First off NEVER WAKE A SLEEPING BABY! Dont' be worried that you aren't feeding your baby enough. Your baby will wake up when he is hungry. Remember a baby's stomach is still so small. I was having the same difficulty with my son. Usually to keep him awake I had to massage his cheek or gently poke at his cheek. Massage your baby's neck to stimulate him. Take off his sock and tickle his foot. Also please keep in mind that the baby can not be swaddled while feeding. What will happen is the baby will become to comfortable and go to sleep. Make the baby slightly uncomfortable. Feed in a bright room or cool room. Skin to skin contact during feeding is also great and will keep the baby's body temperature stabilized if you decide to take off his shirt. Good Luck A. :)

Talk to your pediatrician - they can tell you whether or not you should wake them and how often. My son had lost a lot of weight after birth and we were advised to wake him up to feed him every 2 hours. I found that tickling his feet and cheeks work as well as changing the diaper (the cold air wakes them up).

Good luck and congratulations.

I was breast feeding twins and was told to feed as much as possible at each feeding so i wouldn't be nursing 247. Here's some of the things i did..keep his feet naked...if he doses a little start to rub/tickle the bottoms...change his diaper when they are almost done nursing...keeps them awake...squeeze your areola when he stops...he will be forced to drink...or stay awake to stop...unless your doctor says he doesn't have enough wet diapers i wouldn't ever wake him up to feed him...he's probably to tired to..remeber it's hard to tell how much he's taking in...as long as he's gaining weight and has enough out put he's okay...if the docter still feels he's not getting enough, before you supplement with formula pump and put that in the bottle...nursing does require more energy...good luck

Hi A.,

You didn't mention if you delivered via c-section...The only reason I ask, if because my SIL did in May and was taking the pain killers...She and the OBGYN finally figured that she (SIL) is in a small percentage of moms who pass the pain killer (I don't remember what it was) on to the baby...her milk was making the baby sleep all the time!

If you are "drug free"...try the wet wash cloth trick...If baby is gaining, peeing and pooping - don't supplement. You'll be just fine, baby too!

Best wishes,
J.

depending on your infant, i wouldn't necessarily wake him. my son was born 10 lbs and was big enough that he could sleep for long stretches (like 4 or 5 hours during the day) without needing to nurse. i would keep him awake *while* nursing (as others have said, undressing, holding hand and wiggling, talking loudly to him, etc). make sure with your pediatrician that you're not waking him unnecessarily.
and whatever you do, don't supplement yet! it's WAY too early to have your milk in tune with his needs; allow his hunger to dictate how much you produce. and it's not about how long he nurses; he could be very efficient and be getting enough very quickly (breastfeeding is tricky that way). when you nurse, don't keep such a careful eye on the clock - observe your son! if he nurses frequently, maybe he's not getting enough. if your pediatrician is worried about weight gain, maybe he's not getting enough. but just 'cause he's not nursing the recommended 10 minutes on each side doesn't mean he's not getting enough (my son always only nursed on one side - despite my efforts to the contrary)

hi A.!

congrats on your new baby and on your commitment to breastfeeding. you're doing a great job and looking for the right kind of advice.

as an exclusive breastfeeder only of two kids and being very passionate about this subject, i would urge you to go to your local La Leche League Intl. meeting for support and ideas. LLLI is THE MOST up to date, accurate, and supportive resource for breastfeeding help and information. some people fear that they have an overly assertive agenda about nursing and other parenting issues, but thier foundational priniciple is "Take What Helps and Leave The REST. " so you don't have to feel pressured.

just google La Leche Leage Intl. and click on 'resources' to find your local meeting.

meanwhile i would say try hard not to worry. my son was not drowsy but my daughter was; they really will wake up when they are hungry. i promise. you don't have to wake them. you will not have to supplement. make sure that you are keeping them close by at night in a co sleeper, nearby crib, or even co sleeping if that works for you; if the baby smells you he will be more likely to get stimulated to nurse.

and cherish this time of good sleeping. it is not likely to last. once new babies get over the initial exhaustion of moving to thier new home (ha ha) and they get into nursing, they will usually not leave you alone! this could be the last opportunity to you get to sleep well for like 2 or 3 years, so enjoy it.

i think from exp. that the best thing for you to do is to hand express some milk now; hold the breast in your hand shaped like a C; thumb over the nipple, hand around and fingers under the breast, then squeeze forward; you could do this in the shower. just squeeze till you feel a little relief from the pressure of milk build up, but not more, because then the breast will think it needs to refill. this way, you will get new milk coming in continuously without getting too much. you don't want to replace the feedings you thought you were supposed to have, you want to just create room in the cycle for the baby to figure out when he wants to nurse.

try to be patient. it often takes 6 weeks, and some times more, to get into any kind of groove with nursing. the MOST important thing to look for is wet and poopy diapers and weight gain. sleepy or not, if your baby is doing these things evenly and continuously, then you're both doing great. also consider the latch. make sure that his latch onto the nipple is good, otherwise he might be working too hard to nurse thus getting tired. if you go to a LLL meeting the moms there will be able to work on that with you.

meanwhile if you really feel worried, RENT, do not buy, a HOSPITAL GRADE breastpump from a surgical supply store. you will have to assemble it but it's not hard to do. these machines are FAR more effective in the early part of the nursing relationship at getting lots of milk out; the personal pumps are for later, like 6 months, when you have a really efficient nursing relationship established. i used to get about 8 to 10 ounces out at each pumping from my MEDELA CLASSIC that i rented.

you could use this machine NOT more than once a day for now; you don't want to get into a cycle of engorgement or over production, that is a real nightmare. because then you just have to wean yourself back off the pump. i had that happen to me and i ended up throwing all the milk away anyway becase my son never got used to a bottle, so after a month of trying to use the pump to help my husband feel included in the feeding process, i was twice as engorged and had a soaking wet shirt all the time, and i ended up being the one to do all the feedings anyway. so i would say, you could do this, but wait a few more days, even a week if you can stand it before trying this. pumps are a slippery slope.

last of all, hang in there. you're obviously smart and committed and you will work this out. we all do it.

lotza lov
J.

My daughter did the same thing. My lactation consultant gave me great advice. She said to make her as uncomfortable as possible. I know that sounds cruel but all it means is to take his clothes off. My daughter nursed in just her diaper for practically the entire first month. If he falls asleep while he is still latched, gently nudge him on his jawline under his ear. That helps to get the sucking going again and wake the baby up.
Also, are you taking any pain meds? Even though everyone told me the medicine I took after my c-section wouldn't affect the baby, I did notice she seeemed much more alert and stayed awake while nursing after I stopped taking it.
Good luck and stick with it, the first six weeks are the toughest. :)

check with your pediatrician to make sure your baby is not jaundice.

Dear A.

It is normal for an infant to sleep ALL the time, especially a newborn. My son was only 4.5 lbs when he was born and I too had a tough time nursing him. He would fall back to sleep after only a minute or so. I guess it was too laborious for him. Don't be frustrated, it is a new world for him and he is also adapting.

You do not need to wake him up to nurse. My son's pediatrician told me that when the baby is sleeping the brain is further developing and it would be best not to wake up the baby during this process. He will wake up when he is hungry. Furthermore, You will not need to supplement anything for him. All he needs is in your breast milk!

I am sure you can find numerous information on the net regarding this topic. Here is one I found quickly (copy and paste it in the URL if the link does not work).

http://www.scielo.cl/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pi...

Today, he is a high honors student and looking forward to a attending an ivy league school (and still likes to sleep)!

I hope you find this useful.

Ah the sleepy baby cycle; too sleepy to eat, they just get more hungry and sleepy. They just need a really good tuck in, a full belly, a good sleep and then be able to wake up more to eat. I am super pro breastfeeding and never supplemented my daughter but there is a place for supplementation to help you get on track. If your baby is not gaining weight or not getting 8-10 wet and poopy diapers a day, he isn't getting enough. So you could supplement formula or pumped milk to give him a good meal, if you're worried about nipple confusion and if your okay with the idea :) get another mom with an established supply to nurse him to give him a good meal. (I did that for a friend and her baby got on track and then they had no nursing issues.)

Good luck

wet cloth on a naked baby. We used that tactic for our October baby who was a lazy eater. He grew out of it.
Tickling his feet also helped. My husband's job was to do all these annoying things while I made sure he latched on every time he woke up

good luck.

A.,
My mother who was a nurse for forty years would say never wake a sleeping baby. I found with my son that was true.
I nursed him for almost three years. When he was a baby he too would sleep for much longer periods than the suggested nursing time table. I would let him sleep and he woke when he was hungry. Sometimes babies make their own schedule for things and it is go with the flow.
Hope this helps.
N. S.

hi A.... i have a three week old who does this at times... did it all the time in the hospital, so the nurses would undress him to keep him cool so he wasn't so cozy as to fall asleep. so now i do the same thing at home i just strip him down to nothing but a onsie... seems to work well. hope this helps.

This sounds just like me almost a year ago. My daughter would constantly sleep and even while nursing. The lactation consultant recommended taking her clothes off to make her less warm and comfy. She also suggested using a cool washcloth to put under her chin on arms legs etc. to wake her to nurse. It worked most of the time and I never had to supplement. Hope that helped.

My daughter did the same thing when she was a newborn, could never stay awake long enough for a full feeding. She had jaundice and had to get the phototherapy, but even afterwards she was always so sleepy. I really wanted to continue to breastfeed, so I pumped and fed her from a bottle. Much easier to get the milk into them that way.

You got a lot of good advice here already about how to keep your baby awake, but if those tips don't work, there's always the pumping route. It is more work for you, and you have to make sure to stay away from polycarbonate (#7) plastic bottles but the good news is that other people can feed your baby too. If you go this route, just make sure to pump every 2-3 hours, or the same frequency that your baby feeds, to keep your supply up.

P.S. I'm in a similar situation as you, had a career but am staying home now with a 16 month old and baby #2 on the way.

Hi A.,
Dont supplement!!! Babies do "suck" themselves to sleep. The first couple of weeks are tough. You didnt mention his birthweight and if he was born before his due date. Also did he reagined his birthweight by the 2 week check-up? My 2 were born at 37 and 38 weeks and the lactation consultants said early babies get tired and suck themselves to sleep before the job is done, moreso than 39-40 week babies.

Undressing mine werent enough. I used a cold wash cloth and dripped water on their heads and flicked the bottoms of their feet to keep them up. I know it sounds cruel but it was enough stimulation to keep them up and eating.

If the number of wet and dirty diapers are where they should be and he is gaining well, you should be fine. If you are concerned I would see a consultant and have him weighed before and after feeding to get an better idea of how much he is taking in before falling asleep. Both of mine were very efficient nurser and 3-4 minutes per side is all that was needed, so time at the breast is not an accurate indicator of how much he is getting.

Hi Amy,
Congratulations on your newborn. If he's pooping and peeing and gaining weight, don't supplement. As long as he's doing all of the above, let him sleep! Enjoy it! He'll grow out of it soon enough!

I never woke my kids to eat. As long as he's gaining weight I wouldn't wake him. As long as he's nursing ever 2-3 hours then I'd let him be. This much sleep is normal for his age. I'd nurse on demand, whenever he wants. As for the falling asleep during nursing, I wouldn't worry about that until about 4 wks old. You can try to keep him up by undressing him and using cool wash cloths on his body to wake him. Once he starts to fall asleep, stop nursing and wake him. Tickle him and all that stuff. The reason he isn't nursing well is because he doesn't become hungry between feedings, enough to want to nurse anyway. If you notice your supply is getting less, try and drink more fluids and get more rest (I know impossible with a 2 yr old). You can also drink a non-alcoholic beer a day or get some Mother's Milk Tea (you can buy it at your local health food store, just follow the directions on the package).

What you can do is take off all his clothes so he is a bit chilly and that might keep him awake. That's what a nurse told me to do when I had my son. But I think his sleepiness will go away the older he gets. Don't worry. You won't have to supplement. He is controlling how much he eats and that's how much milk you produce.

I know what you mean...it can be a pain because he needs to eat to gain and grow and you feel full and not releasing...I have had three drowsy boys but they are healthy active boys! One of things I have learned and it helps for the most part is making sure he's ot too warm. expose his feet and legs, and/or keep moving his feet and toes to keep him awake and nurse. I know with my third son, he would not nurse in the hospital after few hours because he was tired. The wrong thing one of th nurses said to do and I trid i and realized that it was going a litle too long. She said strip him naked to his diapers o keep him awake to nurse. Then I realized that he was shivering and I made him warm again but exposing his legs and feet to at least keep him awake for that time being. I'll pray for you, A. and your family and for Jesus to give you His Wisdom in these things.

My son did the same thing, I would use a cool washcloth on his face and /or feet, keeping with the response of making it "uncomfortable" while he nursed to wake him up. He grew out of it with the passing weeks

A., you might want to take this opportunity to pump and freeze some of your milk. That would help keep your supply up when he does start nursing more. I love this stage, cherish it!!